Hey LR folk!
Can you give me advice on taking the train from New York City to Washington DC? I need to arrange travel for my boss and am trying to figure out whether flying or taking the train makes more sense.
She’ll be travelling in late February, so prime storm season.
How reliable is the train for that route? If there’s a storm is it a better bet than flying? Are there any downsides to taking the train I should be aware of?
My thinking is with the drive to the airport, plus check-in and deboarding that the train is not that much more time consuming than flying. She has Nexus and will have carryon, but that only saves so much time.
If you think flying is better, which airports are best?
Hey LR folk!
Can you give me advice on taking the train from New York City to Washington DC? I need to arrange travel for my boss and am trying to figure out whether flying or taking the train makes more sense.
She’ll be travelling in late February, so prime storm season.
How reliable is the train for that route? If there’s a storm is it a better bet than flying? Are there any downsides to taking the train I should be aware of?
My thinking is with the drive to the airport, plus check-in and deboarding that the train is not that much more time consuming than flying. She has Nexus and will have carryon, but that only saves so much time.
If you think flying is better, which airports are best?
Thanks!
The train is great. Take the Acela as it is the fastest and most reliable. It leaves from Penn Station and arrives into Union station in DC. They are supposed to be reintroducing the nonstop soon and that is only 2 1/2 hours. Otherwise it is about 2:50 on the Acela and about 3:30 on the other trains. Personally I prefer to the train if I am downtown as getting to/from the airport can be a hassle.
The answer depends in part on where, exactly, in the NYC and DC areas you’re going to/from. Certainly if it’s Manhattan to downtown DC, I’d always take the train. I have done that trip many times. The risk of bad weather further strengthens the advantage of the train.
The answer depends in part on where, exactly, in the NYC and DC areas you’re going to/from. Certainly if it’s Manhattan to downtown DC, I’d always take the train. I have done that trip many times. The risk of bad weather further strengthens the advantage of the train.
She’s 5 minutes fro the Manhattan train station and 10 from the DC one. Seems like train is best!
The answer depends in part on where, exactly, in the NYC and DC areas you’re going to/from. Certainly if it’s Manhattan to downtown DC, I’d always take the train. I have done that trip many times. The risk of bad weather further strengthens the advantage of the train.
She’s 5 minutes fro the Manhattan train station and 10 from the DC one. Seems like train is best!
I which case, it’s 100% train. The train is far less stress and as you surmise not really any slower in terms of total journey time. Also reduces the risk of weather related delays. Acela isn’t cheap though, but if business travel not an issue probably.
One word of caution, if she misses the train she can’t just hop on the next one. Acela tickets are for specific train times. You need to pay a change fee to switch to a later train.
The answer depends in part on where, exactly, in the NYC and DC areas you’re going to/from. Certainly if it’s Manhattan to downtown DC, I’d always take the train. I have done that trip many times. The risk of bad weather further strengthens the advantage of the train.
She’s 5 minutes fro the Manhattan train station and 10 from the DC one. Seems like train is best!
Acela for the win.
Get first class and your boss will never want to fly again.
Another vote for the Acela. Do business class. Much easier than flying.
For business Acela is basically a must have on the NYC to DC route - the regular trains can end up deprioritized with some serious delays that the Acela’s usually avoid. As much fun as I had waiting around 30th Street station in Philly for three hours while our train made its way up from Virginia, I’d rather avoid that, especially with business travel. The time savings is more on NYC to Boston because there’s a chunk of track where they can actually get close to “high speed” rail.
In the weather is bad enough to disrupt the train, there’s a good chance it will also disrupt flights.
I had a flight to NYC diverted to Baltimore a few years ago because of the weather. All other flights out of Baltimore had been cancelled that night, so I had a meeting the next morning, so I quickly booked the train, only to find that the tracks had been flooded. No available cars to rent at that hour, so took a taxi instead.
The answer depends in part on where, exactly, in the NYC and DC areas you’re going to/from. Certainly if it’s Manhattan to downtown DC, I’d always take the train. I have done that trip many times. The risk of bad weather further strengthens the advantage of the train.
She’s 5 minutes fro the Manhattan train station and 10 from the DC one. Seems like train is best!
Mohinyhan Train Hall in NYC was redone in 2020 and is really nice now! I was there last week heading North.
And if she’s 5 minutes from, she can leave home/office 30-45 minutes before the departure time! Instead of hours before going to JFK or La Guardia or, even worse, Elizabethtown.
There is some wonderful graffiti along the tracks in NJ and PA which you wouldn’t see from an airplane
And Baltimore, and into DC.
You get to ride through the armpit of America on Amtrak from New York to DC. Still better than flying for sure, and the Acela is awesome when you’re hitting almost 150 in central NJ. Only high-speed rail in the US and a few years from now they’ll hit 180+.
I do DC/NYC approximately weekly. My experience/advice…
Plane, train, car, bus. Tried them all, and the total door to door time will be about the same.
For a once in awhile trip (like your case?), train is best. Additional info
If business travel where cost is reimbursable (not out of pocket), Acela is most efficient. First class Acela is not worth the upgrade - you only get a “better” (microwaved) meal, and free beverages. Take the earlier train that you think is needed. Acela and/or NE Regional Amtrak trains will always be delayed. Amtrak doesn’t own the tracks, and freight rail takes priority. Freight travel schedules are highly variable and therefore so are the Amtrak delays. Could be anything from 10mins to an hour, depending on the issue. An on-time arrival is a rarity.
Also, WiFi on the train is terrible… It’s referred to as WhyTry. The Quiet Car is very strict… no talking. Fellow passengers self-police this really well. Almost Karen like. Don’t even think of taking a conference call enroute from there. In the non-quiet car, everyone can hear your side of the conference call, so be careful about confidential info. Over various trips I’ve taken I’ve heard about legal cases, family drama, medical situations, investment (insider) info, … and more.
There is some wonderful graffiti along the tracks in NJ and PA which you wouldn’t see from an airplane
And Baltimore, and into DC.
You get to ride through the armpit of America on Amtrak from New York to DC. Still better than flying for sure, and the Acela is awesome when you’re hitting almost 150 in central NJ. Only high-speed rail in the US and a few years from now they’ll hit 180+.
I don’t like driving/parking in NYC, so whenever we go up there, we take NJ Transit from Trenton
Whenever I needed to go to DC/Bethesda for work, I would drive
There was a guy I used to work with who loved to ‘complain’ about doing expense reports, as a function of “CFO asked for me to be there , specifically” and would always take the train from Philly, even if it had to be a 6AM “red-eye”